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Monetary policy

Price stability is the best contribution that monetary policy can make to economic growth

Our main aim at the ECB is price stability. We serve people living in the euro area by working to preserve the value of the euro. In this section you can learn about our policy strategy, the tools we use and the impact they have on your day-to-day life. 

Monetary policy decisions

We take decisions on monetary policy every six weeks – determining what should be done to keep inflation at our 2% target. Right after the decisions are taken, the President and Vice-President explain them in detail in a press conference. 

Monetary policy decisions and more

Monetary policy statement

We take decisions on monetary policy every six weeks – determining what should be done to keep inflation under control. Our visual statement explains this in short and easy-to-understand language.

Our monetary policy statement at a glance

What is the ECB?

Our birthday is 1 June 1998. That’s when we started to prepare for the single currency, the euro. Want to know more about what the European Central Bank does and how it relates to you in your daily life?

Read more about the ECB

Tools and policy measures

Our monetary policy influences how much you have to pay to borrow and how much interest you receive on your savings. We steer interest rates with the aim of achieving price stability in the euro area. Find out how our tools and measures work.

More information on our tools

Monetary operations

In addition to setting key interest rates, we also conduct open market operations. Check out the latest information on these operations.

Find out more
COVID-19
Our response to the pandemic
TRANSPARENCY

Learn more about the reasoning behind our monetary policy decisions

MONETARY POLICY ACCOUNTS

We publish accounts of the Governing Council meetings in which monetary policy decisions are taken. These documents provide a summary of the discussions that took place.

Monetary policy accounts

ECONOMIC BULLETIN

The Economic Bulletin provides additional insight into the economic, financial and monetary developments that form the basis for our monetary policy decisions.

Read more
Not an expert? Check out our explainer
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What is monetary policy?

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